All Blacks Coach Steve Hansen Argues Teams Should Be Allowed To Collapse Mauls

The All Blacks have recognised that they are vulnerable to the lineout drive, an aspect of the game that coach Steve Hansen has called “bloody boring”.

After watching his team concede two tries to the Pumas in Christchurch via the set piece – both to hooker Agustin Creevy – Hansen said his side had work to do there ahead of next weekend’s test against the Springboks in Johannesburg, but restated his belief that the rolling maul is a blight on the game.

“I want to be clear too, I’m not having a go at the ref [Craig Joubert] or the way he reffed it. I’m having a go at the laws,” Hansen said last night. “He’s reffing it as the laws say you can. It’s bloody boring, though.”

Asked what change he would make to the laws, Hansen said: “You can’t take it out of the game but you’ve got to make it a fair contest.

“You’re not allowed to have a back move where someone runs along the front of everybody and doesn’t let them tackle somebody, so have the same principles in a lineout.

“And the easiest way would be say you can collapse it. There’s never been anybody injured in a collapsed maul yet, but there’s thousands every week that get penalised. Just make that legal then it becomes half-pie a fair contest …

“Having said all that, the laws are what they are and we have to be better at defending them. We got a nice reminder of that tonight.”